The Dreams

Dream 23

I was strolling down the street. I knew this place well — for it was where I worked and where I played, where I met my friends and my sweethearts alike. I greeted this one as I shook hands with that one — while noticing a man crossing in front of me, neither very close nor very far away.

From time to time, he would turn about to be sure that I was behind him. Perhaps this wasn’t the first time I’d seen him, but certainly there was no mutual bond between us. What he was doing annoyed me, and presented me with a challenge. I quickened my steps, and he quickened his. I felt he was plotting something, and this made me more defiant. Then a friend called me over to deal with some private business and I headed to his shop, where, absorbed in conversation, I forgot about the man.

When, in the late afternoon, our business was finished, I bid my friend goodbye. As I made for my house, I remembered the man and turned to look behind me. I saw him following me, just as I had found him walking ahead of me before.… Incensed, I decided to stop to see what he was doing. Instead, I found myself moving faster as though I were fleeing from him. Dismayed, I wondered, what does he want?

When my house came in sight, I finally felt relaxed as I opened the door and stepped inside without a glance over my shoulder. Finding the place empty, I went to my bedroom — then stopped at the peculiar sensation that the man was lurking within.